Rise of the Guardians: Vega
by pokecharmer007
Summary: Ever felt like you don't fit in? Not in the 'bullied in school or abused at home' kind of way, but like you don't belong here? Well, I have. And all my life, I thought I was a normal girl who goes to a normal school and has a normal life but it seems Fate has other plans for me. My name is Vega Mallory, and this is my not-so-normal story.
1. Prologue: Start of a Story

Prologue

* * *

_Ever had that feeling like you don't fit in? _

_Like you don't belong here, or even in this world?_

_Well, I have._

_I mean, sure I'm a typical high school girl, living life as it is with a loving family. But I always felt like I don't fit in; not that I was hated in school or was picked on. It's just that tiny tug in the back of your mind that sometimes bothers you for no good reason._

_I once told my father about it but he replied it was nothing. But I'm sure it wasn't nothing._

"Daddy, I'm feeling that tug again." a young girl called as she pulled on her father's shirt.

"Ignore it, baby cakes. It's probably nothing." the man by the wheel said, eyes looking forward onto the dark road.

"It could be naughty pixies playing with your hair." a woman sitting beside the man told the little girl with a smile.

The girl whined as she hid her hair, "I don't want my hair to be tug."

The parents laughed at their young daughter, when the father shouted and swerved the car to the right to avoid a figure on the road.

The car they were in crashed into a few trees before tipping over a boulder. The car, now scraps of metal, exploded due to the leaking gasoline catching on fire from the spark plug while the father and mother laid a few feet away, all curled around and dead.

Then a shadowy figure appeared briefly to watch the mishap before disappearing away with a dark cackle. What the shadow didn't see is the small unconscious body being safely wrapped in her parent's arms.

The moon shone brightly over the family.

_My name is Vega Mallory. And this is my story._


	2. Chapter 1: Burgess and Pitch's Return

Chapter 1

* * *

"Do you have everything ready, child?" a brunette woman with a messy bun asked the teenager in front of her.

"Yes, Mrs. Anderson." the girl replied with a smile as she tied her platinum-blonde hair in a low ponytail before grabbing a large gray duffel bag that has light-blue stars on it.

"Did you pack extra clothes? I don't want Mrs. Bennett to complain about your lack of clothes."

"Yes."

"Did you also pack a few warm sweaters? It's winter out there."

"Yes, I know so I packed a few extras."

"How about toiletries?"

A nod.

"Passport? Air flight tickets?"

"Yes, Mrs. Anderson. They're right here in my hand." the girl said as she smiled at the woman.

"Sorry, it's kind of startling that you're moving into your aunt's place after spending so many years in the orphanage. It's kind of hard to let you go." Tears starts to swell in her eyes as she took our her handkerchief to wipe them off. "The other children are going to miss you."

"I'll be fine. And I promise to come back to visit." the girl assured as they walked outside of an old three-story house where a taxi is waiting outside.

"I know you would, dear. It's just... I'm so happy you finally found a home to stay in, instead of this old house." the care-taker then hugged the girl who hugged back. "Take care, my dear Vega."

"I will." they separated and the girl got into the car, waving her old home goodbye. She sighed after the taxi had gone a far distance from the orphanage before taking out a crumpled piece of paper. "Burgess... here I come."

**XXXX**

_"We'll be landing in Burgess shortly. Please make sure your seat belts are fastened tightly. Thank you for joining..."_

Vega breathed out a sigh as she watched out of the window. It's already in high noon when they announced they have arrived in Burgess, and it relaxed her a bit. She was nervous on meeting her aunt who she had met when she was, what, six? She then vaguely remembered that she had a cousin brother there too, along with a cousin sister.

She smiled; she had always been great with kids, telling them stories, singing lullabies. I mean, she's the oldest among the orphans, being at the age of 18, though she looked to be 16 due to her slightly short stature. Got picked on quite a few times but scared her bullies away after they realized they pissed off the girl at the wrong time.

As Vega stared out into the clouds, her steel-gray eyes caught a flash of white and blue zooming past her seat window. Rubbing her eyes, she looked out again but couldn't see anything.

'Must be seeing things.' she thought as she pinched the bridge of her nose before deciding to take a nap. If she had tried to look past the clouds, she could see a certain frosty-haired spirit flying in the sky with a hooked stick.

After the plane had landed at the Burgess airport, Vega grabbed her duffel bag and followed the other passengers out to the Arrival Hall. There, she tried to search for her aunt but the only clues are her vague memory and a faded photograph of her.

"Vega! Over here!" a voice called out to her so she turned to find a neck-long brown haired woman waving at her with those familiar brown eyes. She smiled before rushing over. The woman warmly hugged her, "Oh, it's been a long time since I had seen you. And look how much you have grown. My goodness."

"It has been, Aunt Christine." she replied as they walked outside of the airport where Christine had parked her car. After getting in, the car starts up and drove away towards the busy highway.

"Jamie and Sophie are back at the house. They're very excited to meet you, Vega." Christine said.

"I'm pretty sure they're expecting a cousin brother instead." the teen joked. It's not the first time her name was misinterpreted as being a boy's name. Back then, her classmates thought she was a boy due to her relatively short hair and her name but was worth it to see their reaction when they realized she was a girl the whole time.

The woman chuckled and the rest of the drive was silent which brought the teen to sleep.

Vega then felt the car pulled to a stop on a driveway before realizing they had arrived. Getting out of the car with her duffel bag, she followed her aunt towards a nearby space where she saw Jamie and Sophie playing with their friends, though there is an oddity out of them; a taller boy in the middle, holding a long stick and wearing a blue hoodie, complete with brown trousers. Vega then noticed he wasn't wearing any shoes... but even more bizarre, his hair was white, as in snow-white._  
_

"Jamie, Sophie!" her aunt called. Said children turned to find their mother calling while Vega hid behind her. She may be great with kids but she's not good with meeting new people, even if they are kids. Her two cousins ran over to their mother as she lightly pushed Vega out of her hiding place. "Kids, I like you to meet your cousin, Vega Mallory."

"Wait, I thought Cousin Vega is a guy. You never told me that he's a girl." Jamie said while Sophie was bouncing like a bunny saying, "Vega! Vega! Hop! Hop! Hop!"

Said teen turned to her aunt, "Told you so."

"Well, you never ask." Christine teased her son who pouted. The woman then took the duffel bag, "I'll just take your bag so you kids can interact with each other. Have fun!" Then, she disappeared into the house.

The trio just stood there, doing nothing until Jamie and Sophie returned to the space where they had left their friends to continue playing. Vega watched with a smile as she sat down at a nearby bench. It was then she realized the frosty-haired boy was nowhere to be seen, like he had vanished into thin air. She sighed while rubbing her temples. 'Must be jet lag...'

Feeling bored, she softly sang a tune that had been stuck in her head for a long time.

_When daytime turns to night  
When the moon shines bright  
When you're tucked in tight  
When everything's all right  
Slip softly to that place_

_Where secret thoughts run free  
And there come face to face  
With who you want to be  
So swim accross the ocean blue  
Fly a rocket to the moon  
You can change your life  
Or you can change the world  
Take a chance  
Don't be afraid  
Life is yours to live  
Take a chance  
And then the best is yet to come_

_Make a wish  
It's up to you  
Find the strength inside  
The watch your dreams come true  
You don't need a shooting star  
The magic's right there in your heart  
Close your eyes  
Believe  
And make a wish_

She sighed again before going back to watch the children who are starting a snowball fight. She giggled at that.

'A snowball fight... it's been a long time since I had one...' she thought with a grin as she leaned her head back when suddenly...

_SPLAT!_

A snowball landed on her face. The children watched in shock when Jamie wanted to throw his snowball at the flying barefooted snow spirit but aimed it too high and instead, landed down onto his cousin. They watched in anticipation as she sat straight up and wiped the snow away from her face with her hand, then waited for an angry teen to shout at them, even Jack Frost waited, but what they got is unexpected.

She stared at them blankly before bursting into a chuckle and said, "If I had known it was raining snowballs today, I would have brought an umbrella with me."

"Sorry, Cousin Vega." Jamie apologized, still surprised that the teen didn't shout at them. Though he did have a snowball splat to his face.

"That's for payback, Jamie." she smirked. After that, she joined the kids in the fun and laughter.

**XXXX**

After a long day of playing in the snow, Vega led her younger cousins inside so they could warm up. Christine was out working so she helped themselves with cups of hot chocolate.

Ever since the father of the household left, her aunt was trying to make ends meet with the monthly bills and such so she started working which in turn took up a lot of her time to spend with her kids so she thought Vega could babysit them as she work.

"That was fun! I didn't know you like snowball fights, Cousin Vega." Jamie said as the teen gave a cup to him after she had tucked a tired Sophie to bed.

"Of course I do." she replied, sipping a bit of her chocolate. "And just call me Vega. Cousin Vega seems like a mouthful."

"In that case, I'll call you "Sissy" then!"

This surprised the teen but she got over it with a chuckle. Then the two cousins chatted a little, with Jamie telling her about Yetis, fairies, and many other mythical creatures. He even told her about the Guardians which she silently thought of a dream instead. Hearing the clock chime, she turned to see that it's almost midnight.

"Alright, time for you to go to bed."

"But I'm not... (yawn) sleepy yet..." Jamie said with a yawn.

"Oh yes, you are. If you want Santa to give you a present, You better behave like all good boys and girls do."

Jamie pouted but obliged as they walked up to his bedroom hand in hand. Vega then tucked him in. It was then Sophie entered the room which surprised the girl as the young six year old climbed onto her lap.

"Bedtime story." Sophie pleaded with her puppy eyes.

Vega sighed and said, "Alright, one story and it's off to bed with you two."

The teen then re-positioned herself so she could face the two children, "Long ago, there lived a beautiful princess..."

**XXXX**

Vega once again tucked Sophie into bed and quietly closed the door behind her with a soft click before checking in on Jamie who was also sound asleep, though she noticed his table lamp is still on so she tip-toed inside and turn it off. Walking over to the young 10 year old, she bid a 'sweet dreams' and exited the room.

Getting under her covers as well, she was out like a light once her head hit the soft pillow. But what she didn't know is the black sand that's creeping over her head before it disappeared out of her bedroom door and into Jamie's.

* * *

At the North Pole, North had gathered the Guardians in for an important meeting.

"Welcome, my friends!" the jolly man greeted his fellow spirits: Bunnymund, the Easter Rabbit and Guardian of Hope, who's busy painting an egg even though Easter has long passed. Sandy, the Sandman and Guardian of Dreams, gulping down cup after cups of eggnog. Toothiana, the Tooth Fairy and Guardian of Memories, is busy talking to her mini workers. And Jack Frost, the mischievous winter spirit and Guardian of Fun, is watching Sandy to make sure he doesn't overdid it.

"So North, what's the news today?" Bunnymund asked.

Said Claus sighed, his jolliness disappeared instantly as he turned to the giant globe, "See for yourself."

The Guardians watched the globe as light lit up in every places on the globe. Nothing unusual, unless you count the seemingly increasing mass of black sand.

"Is it Pitch again?" Tooth asked.

"I'm afraid so." North replied.

Two years had passed since the defeat of Pitch Black the Boogeyman and the Guardians went on with their daily lifestyle, thinking they had done with him but it seems they were wrong.

"Oh look what we have here!" the familiar creepy voice spoke as the sand took a form of Pitch. "The Big Five all gathered here after two long years. Oh what a touching reunion this is. I think I'm going to cry."

"Well, you'll be crying soon enough when I get my hands on you!" Jack exclaimed as the five readied themselves.

Pitch cackled as he glided across the room, "Oh, don't be hasty. I'm merely here to say hello."

"What do ya want, Pitch? I doubt ya here to say hello" Bunnymund demanded.

"No need to be so impatient. Soon the end of your time will come." Pitch said as the sand glided back to the globe.

"What makes you think that?" Tooth said.

"Because..." he paused to laugh. "I finally found the Granter."

The older Guardians gasped in shock while Jack looked at them in confusion.

"You wouldn't dare?!" Tooth charged at the sand but instead run smacked onto the globe.

"Oh, but I will." the black sand swirled around before slowly dwindling. "If I were you, I should hurry and find the Granter... If you can."

Jack then fired his ice bolt but the sand had vanished. Once the tension had died down, the winter spirit turned to his fellow Guardians with a bunch of question in mind but one stood out.

"What was Pitch talking about? And What is a Granter?"

"Not what, Jack. It's who." Tooth started. "The Granter is the one who grants wishes and make them come true."

"If Pitch did find the Granter, then we're up for a tough battle." North explained.

"You mean, he's going to ask for a wish?" Jack asked. Sandy shook his head before making a image of a person, one he assume to be the Granter, then a smiley face and a small child.

"The Granter would never grant anything to him. They only grant wishes of children." Bunnymund said. "Besides, the Granter has been helping us for many a centuries. Why did ya think I placed eggs more so than others?"

"Or how I know what present to give to children?" North said.

"Ok, so the Granter is on our side so if Pitch is not going to ask for a wish, what's he going to do with a Granter then?"

Sandy then made an image of the Granter and Pitch. Then a knife appeared in the Boogeyman's hand before stabbing the Granter.

"He wants to destroy the Granter so no wishes would ever come true." Tooth explained.

"Then more kids will stop believing in us because their wishes didn't come true." Jack said, finally understanding. "Then we better find this Granter quick! But, uh... what does the Granter look like?" The older Guardians shook their head. "I thought you said they've been helping you guys for so long. How can you not know them?"

"We do." North replied. "But that was a century ago."

"What do you mean?" Sandy showed him the same image about Pitch killing the Granter, which Jack realized. "You mean..."

Tooth nodded solemnly, "Pitch had destroyed the first Granter. So we don't know how does the second one looks like."

"But that won't stop us from finding them."

It was then the Yetis started babbling like crazy with North the only one who could understand the babbling.

"What? The Globe?" they turned to find a single light shining much brighter than the others, even more so than Jamie's. "It seems we have found our lead."


	3. Chapter 2: Light and Shadow

Chapter 2

* * *

_A beautiful night sky, void of anything, until a lone figure appeared in one part of the void before shining brightly like a star and flew around the sky, sending twinkling stars everywhere. Two more figures appeared on either side of the shining one and they raced each other, flying further away from their original spot. The three of them laughing in joy and cheer as they flew past the full moon. But not before greeting it like an old friend. _

_Then, total darkness... _

"Whoa!" Vega exclaimed as she suddenly sat up on her bed. Looking around to find her room, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Geez, again." She rubbed her temples to ease an incoming headache. "What was that all about?" Then, the living room phone rang. "I better go get that."

As she got off her bed and grabbed her sweater (since it's cold outside), she took the pendant necklace that was lying on the bedside table and wore it on before she went downstairs to the main hall where the phone is and lifted the receiver.

"Hello?"

"_Vega?_" It was her aunt calling. No surprise there since she worked in the night shift. "_So sorry to call you this late, but I have some bad news._"

"Is something wrong, auntie?" she asked, worried that something happened to her. "Are you alright?"

"_I'm fine. A little stressed out but still ok._" she breathed a sigh. "_Anyways, I called to inform that... I'll be heading overseas. The director wanted me to lend a hand with the Southern Branch. It seems we have a few problems there._"

"Um, ok. How long will you be gone?"

"_...About a week or two. Preferably, I'll be back before Christmas._" Christine replied. "_Do you mind telling Jamie and Sophie?_"

"Alright, I will." she assured. After sharing a few words, Vega returned the receiver back to its place before rubbing her temples. It's not even a day and already, she's been pushed with a responsibility. "Let's just hope they'll understand." she whispered as she glanced down at the yellow topaz star-shaped pendant; the last gift from her parents.

After getting a drink of water, Vega headed back upstairs. But halfway up, the familiar tug in the back of her mind came back but stronger. Usually giving her a sense of danger, depending on how strong the tug is.

"Whenever the tug is strong, something is bound to go wrong." she recited the phrase like a mantra as she continued up the stairs. "I just hope the kids are okay." All of a sudden, a scream was heard inside of Jamie's room.

"I hate it when I'm right." she groaned before barging in to find the back of a tall, slender man dressed in black, threatening her cousin.

"I knew I should have got rid of you two years ago!" the lanky man said as black sand swarmed around him. Jamie stared wide eyed at him when suddenly...

"Hey, leave him alone!" Vega shouted as she did a spinning heel kick to his head, disorienting him before he could see who it was. Then, the teen brought a heel drop kick down, leaving him face-planted onto the floor. "Jamie, are you alright?" she asked the boy.

Said boy stared wide-jawed before exclaiming, "That was so cool!"

Vega chuckled before turning to the man, "By the way, who is this guy? A Burglar?"

"I'll tell you later. Right now, we better get Sophie and get out of here before he wakes up!"

Grabbing Sophie wasn't necessary since the girl came toddling by because she was awaken from her brother's scream. After dressing the two up in their winter wear and shoes, Vega led the two out of the house and onto the pavement outside.

"Ok. Now mind telling me who the heck was that?" Jamie then told her everything that had happened two years ago. "Ok, let me get this straight: the tales of the Guardians you have just told me moments ago was real? And you're telling me the guy I just face-planted is the Boogeyman?" Jamie nodded. "If he is, then he's a wuss and I'm a monkey's uncle."

"He is real! They're all real!"

"Ok, chill! I'm just saying." Vega calmed the boy down as they relaxed by the park bench. The teen sat Sophie on her lap, letting her play with her pendant necklace. "Anyways, if the Boogeyman is real, why haven't I seen him in my childhood? I mean, you said he's been terrorizing every kid in the world."

"Jack said he just appeared two years ago after being underground for many years." he replied.

"Who's Jack?"

Before he could answer, the streetlights began flickering on and off unnaturally so Vega held a protective arm around her cousins. Then the Boogeyman appeared in a swirl of black sand.

"Well, well. If it isn't the two little lights that won't go out." Pitch said, gesturing to the Bennett siblings who are hiding behind their older cousin who had stood up in case she have to fight the man. "And it seems we have a new friend here. Who is also so... full of light."

In an instant, he was standing directly in front of Vega who slightly backed away from the sudden closure. A finger lifted her chin up so she's facing the pale-skinned man, "Tell me, who might you be, my dear?"

"Vega, and you have ten seconds to step away from us." she growled as she slapped the finger away.

"Ooh, feisty, aren't you?" Pitch then teleported back to where he was standing. "I like that."

"What do you want?"

"Oh, it's not from you that I want. It's from him." Jamie shrunk back as Pitch pointed a slender finger at him. "You see, I'm trying to find the Granter. And my sources had led me to think that the Granter is here in Burgess so I expected you to have it."

"Like I said, I don't know what or who is the Granter!" Jamie exclaimed.

"Look, Pitch or Black or whoever you are! If you think you can come up here and start spouting out nonsense to my cousin, you've got another thing coming!"

"Ooh, what're you going to do? Throw a snowball at me?" Pitch joked as Nightmares starts to emerged from the pure white snow.

"Jamie, grab your sister and hide behind the bench. Don't come out for anything!" Vega whispered as she pushed the two youngsters towards the bench. Keeping their heads low, Jamie and Sophie peeked out between the cracks to see their older cousin facing off with Pitch and his army of Nightmares.

"...Boo..."

Vega's steel-gray eyes widened as the black horses stampeded across the snow field before circling around them like wolves to prey. The teen watched their every move while keeping a close eye on her cousins.

"Whoa!" she leaned back as a horse flew over her head. She back-flipped over a horse that came from behind her, then cartwheeling away from two others. "Boy, sure glad I took those gymnastics classes." she whispered while somersaulting from another. She then did an Ina Bauer to avoid four pairs of stampeding hooves that flew over her.

Pitch sent Nightmare after Nightmare to the girl who had been skillfully dodging them one after another, which frustrated him to no end since the girl was having fun trying to avoid his precious beings of fear, as if this was a game.

"Enough!" Pitch exclaimed. "It seems I have been too lenient with you. I'll just snuff you out like a candle!"

Then, a larger horde of Nightmares appeared out of nowhere and began stampeding towards Vega. Said girl looked in horror at the numbers while Pitch smirked in victory as the wave surrounded the girl who shielded herself with her arms.

"Sissy!" Jamie called out as Vega was swallowed up by the wave of Nightmares. He then glared at the Boogeyman who just laughed in dark humor when suddenly he was struck by an ice bolt. They looked up to find North's sleigh with Sandy readying his whips and had started taking out the Nightmares.

"Jamie! Sophie!" Jack called to the siblings who ran over to him with a hug. "Thank goodness, you're both alright!"

Jamie sniffed as he pulled away, looking at the winter spirit with pleading eyes. "Jack, you have to help Sissy! You've got to help her!"

"Hold on there, who's Sissy?"

"I'm afraid you're too late, Guardians." Pitch said as he materialized not far from them. North had landed the sleigh right behind Jack and the Bennett's with Bunny still looking a bit green while Tooth and Sandy were busy fending off the Nightmares. "If you had come sooner, you would have save yourself a casualty." he cackled as he gestured towards the wave of black sand.

"You big meanie!" Sophie shouted as she ran out into plain sight. "Give back Sissy!"

"No, Sophie!" Bunnymund shouted as he followed the young girl but a few Nightmares got in his way, as they did with North and Jack.

"Oh, I 'll give her back... By sending you to her!" Pitch then sent out a dozen of his black horses to the young girl who froze in sight. Everyone watched in horror as they got closer.

Sophie watched in fright as the horses circled her before she started crying. "Sissy!"

Then, from the larger swirling black sand came pillars of bright golden light before they dispersed the sand away into silvery dust. In the middle of it all is Vega and she's not looking very happy when she caught the scene that is unfolding in front of her.

"Get away from Sophie!" she charged at the swarm before touching one horse which then turned into a dream stallion and it created a domino effect. One after another, the Nightmares became dream stallions. Vega, though shocked at the sudden event, then consoled a crying Sophie. "It's ok, sweet cakes. Sissy is here. Nobody is going to hurt you when I'm around."

"But I will!" Pitch appeared behind her. Vega quickly turned around to see the Boogeyman with his large scythe raised in the air.

She closed her eyes and shielded the young girl with her body. "Leave us alone!" she shouted, her hand raised out.

That's when something extraordinary happened, and the start of her fantasy adventure.

Her out-stretched hand starts to shine brightly, momentarily blinding Pitch before a beam of light was fired at him but missed and it continued on to the remaining Nightmares, turning them into dusts that glisters like the stars above. Pitch, after getting over his blindness, then raised his scythe again but was intercepted by Jack's ice bolt.

"You may have won this round, but I will be back and I will find the Granter! Mark my words!" Pitch declared before disappearing.

Once the Guardians made sure the coast is clear of Pitch and his underlings, they turned to the teen who is being hugged by Jamie and Sophie.

"Well, at least Pitch didn't really find the Granter... yet. So there is still hope." Jack casually said before turning to Vega. "By the way... Who are you?"

Vega opened her mouth to speak but suddenly blacked out. Jack caught her before she could hit the snow-covered ground.

"We should probably do this back at the workshop." North suggested which everyone agreed.

* * *

"So she's your cousin who you never met before and had suddenly popped out of nowhere to come lived with you." Jack summarized. An hour after they had got back to the workshop, the teen had just awoken and the children were explained of the situation with Vega being told the whole thing from two years ago, though Vega immediately interrogated by the Guardians.

"That about sums it up." Jamie said. Vega had stayed quiet throughout the whole thing, her mind still whirling with questions. And the fact that the fairy tale characters of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Sandman, the Tooth Fairy and Jack Frost were all real, though they were a whole lot different than the cliche.

"Sissy, you ok?" Jamie asked.

She nodded, "I'm fine. It's just... wow, to see the real life fairy tale characters of old... It's just amazing. And here I thought I was telling stories for the fun of it. Though they're a whole lot different than the ones I know."

"Oh, like what?" North asked, interested since he didn't know there are stories about him or his fellow Guardians.

"Well, for example: the Santa Claus is portrayed to be a... to sum it up, the fat jolly man." At this, Jack and Bunnymund started to snicker. "Though..." She turned to North. "I never heard of a Santa having tattoos or carries swords with him, or have a Russian accent."

She then turned to Bunnymund, "The stories always portrays the Easter Bunny to be... cuter. Not a 6 foot tall rabbit that wields boomerangs and has an Australian accent but cool." the rabbit smiled smugly.

"And I always thought the tooth fairy is smaller and all sparkles. But I like you better."

"Oh, thank you." Tooth thanked before prying the teen's mouth open with her mini fairies peering inside. "And you have the prettiest teeth. Look how shiny they are."

"Tooth, hands out of mouth." North warned.

The hummingbird hybrid apologized before commanding one of her fairy helpers to another part of the world to collect a tooth. Vega massaged her cheeks after being forced open when Sandy waved his arms about before a dream sand image of an arrow pointing down at him appeared above his head.

"Well, the Sandman is usually portrayed as an old man carrying a bag of sleeping sand but you're cute too."

This made the Sandman blushed as dream sand bells chimed.

"Hey, what about me?" Jack asked. "Do they have stories about me?"

Vega then paused for a while before replying, "Well, there are stories about you but your personifications differed but mostly they used the most common one."

"And that is..." Jack waited in anticipation, feeling happy that there are people who believed in Jack Frost. And can't wait to hear what they portrayed him to be.

"...A two-legged snowman that goes 'Hee-Ho' and wears a blue jester hat, collar and shoes..." she breathed out.

At that, Bunnymund burst out laughing, "Crikey! (laughs) two-legged snowman! That's a good one!"

"Not funny..." Jack said, pouting. And here he thought he was something cool.

"Well, at least that personification's cute... unless you want to be Old Man Winters..." Again, Bunny laughed loudly. His large feet thumping on the floorboards.

"Old Man! That's pure gold!"

"Shut it, Cottontail."

After Bunny has calmed down, the Guardians then discussed on what to do since Pitch seems to be hell-bent on going after Jamie, thinking he might know where the Granter is. And Vega had already gotten herself blacklisted on his 'People to destroy next time' list with her fancy light show.

"So how was I able to do that weird... light thing?"

"I told you; the same thing happened when I turned the black sand into dream sand," Jamie insisted.

"Yeah, I know. But what about after that? My hand started glowing and fired a beam of light. Nobody can do that."

"It could have been made from your desire to protect Sophie," Tooth suggested. "That instinct against Pitch's shadows created light."

Vega frowned. "But it hasn't happened before."

"That's because you have not fought Pitch before." North placed a hand on her shoulder. "I find that us Guardians find our Center when we fight him. That's how I found mine."

"Center? What do you mean by that?"

"All Guardians have a Center," North explained. "It connects us with our duties; it is what we are able to bring to children. I bring Wonder." He gestured around his workshop, at all the toys being made by the yetis (not by elves, though they were thought to be). "Bunny brings Hope." He pointed to Bunny, who held out an egg to Sophie; she took it with a smile. "Sandy brings Dreams." His arm extended towards Sandy, who created a stream of dream sand which turned into dolphins. "Tooth brings Memories." Tooth revealed a small baby tooth in her hand. "And Jack brings Fun." Jack smiled as he created a snowball in his hand.

Vega could see what he meant; the Guardians brought together the most important parts of childhood and made sure every child experienced them. But she couldn't understand why North was telling her this.

"But I'm not a Guardian," she told him. "I'm just a normal girl."

He chuckled. "You don't have to be a Guardian to have a Center. Your Center is what drives your purpose in life. What is yours?"

Vega bit her lip. "You will soon learn of your Center, child."

She smiled before nodding. Then crashes were heard outside in the hallway. The Guardians rushed outside with Vega staying behind with the kids as they watched elves scattering in panic while yetis made sure the toys are safe as the intruder flapped around like a headless chicken before crash-landing in front of Vega.

This shocked them when the intruder turned out to be a small blue-scaled dragon with big round bronze eyes and feathery wings.

"Please do not be alarm." the dragon spoke, surprising the children. "I have brought terrible news from my master. He needs your help right away!"

"Who is your master?" Vega asked.


	4. Chapter 3: Maker of Imaginary Friends

Chapter 3

A/N: Yes, I portrayed Jack as the Megami Tensei Jack Frost but... who disagree that this snowman is so cute? Unless you want me to say 'Jack Frost is an old colonial general riding on a skeleton horse and brandishes his sword at whoever he wants.' I mean, hello! This is a child-friendly movie, not a M-Rated movie.

* * *

"Roan, the Maker of Imaginary Friends." North replied, which confused the non- and new Guardians. "He's an old friend of ours. He creates imaginary friends for children around the world."

"So that's where they come from!" Jamie said understandingly.

"So, what's this little guy doing here?" Vega asked.

"The lad tends to send Flapper out whenever he needs help with the overbearing demands of imaginary friends, especially during the Dark Ages." Bunnymund explained casually, as if it's no big deal.

The teen nodded, 'Though seeing how panicked he look, he seems to be more than that if the tug is anything to go by.' she massaged her temples.

"What seems to be the problem, Flapper? The old lad isn't stressing himself out, is he?" North chuckled.

"Worse that that! It's Pitch!" the reptile exclaimed, flapping his feathery wings in a hurry. "He suddenly attacked the tree house! He might be attacking Master at this very second!" they gasped.

"Then what are we waiting for! Prepare the sleigh! We're going to Mystic tree!" he ordered as the Guardians made their way towards where North kept his sleigh, the children and the little dragon following behind them.

"Are you sure that is a good idea? I don't think the sleigh could fit all of us-" Vega paused in her sentence when she saw wild reindeers appeared from the cove, stomping their hooves onto the icy ground (which surprised her that the ground didn't give way yet) with he yetis calming them down and, she expected an old wooden thing like she usually saw on Christmas Cards, but instead... "Now that's what I call a modern makeover."

"Just wait until it flies, Twinkle." Jack told her.

The girl turned and gave him a raised eyebrow. "Twinkle?"

"Well, your name is of a star so 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star'." He shrugged.

She just chuckled as she playfully punched his shoulder. "Don't get to use to it, Old Man Winters."

That stunned him so Vega used the opportunity to climb into the sleigh, sitting in between her two cousins with Flapper sitting snugly on her lap. Jack hopped in after, sitting directly behind Vega. Sandy and Tooth in the front with North. That left Bunnymund who is hesitant.

"I think I'll be taking my tunnels, mate..." But then North grabbed him and sat him down beside Jack, who smirked knowingly; they were all aware of Bunny's fear of flying and the impending ride of doom they're about to encounter, except the children since this is their first time flying in the sleigh.

"What's so bad about riding a sleigh?" Vega asked, confused about Bunny's weird behavior.

"The part when the ride becomes a roller coaster." he warned.

"Roller coaster?!" the kids exclaimed. The Easter bunny smirked, thinking he had some allies who are against riding this sleigh. But... "Cool!" his face faltered.

"Everyone loves the sleigh~" North said. "Buckle up!"

"That better not be an expression, mate! There's kids here!"

"Done." Seat belts appeared... but only for the children, who found themselves strapped in tightly by the lap belts across their waists.

Bunny was at least satisfied by that... but he still looked confused. "What about us, mate?"

North laughed. "You don't _need_ one." He grabbed the reins and cracked them; the reindeer launched forwards at a tremendous speed, and as they ran through the icy tunnels beneath North's workshop, all that could be heard was the laughter from the children and Bunny's embarrassing screams of terror.

"I hope you like loopy-loops!" North said as they traveled up one loop.

"I hope you like carrots..." Bunny groaned as he held in his lunch.

"This isn't so bad!" Vega shouted in joy. Then, for the finishing touch, a long ski jump at the end.

"Crikey! Next time, I'll take my tunnels!" his screams echoed throughout the North Pole as the sleigh made the jump and flew through the skies.

**XXXX**

The sleigh appeared out the other end of the portal, which closed behind them. Below them was a vast woodland covered with acres and acres of fresh green forest, and in the center was a much larger tree anyone had ever seen with a moat around the base, a lot of space to walk around and a long winding river attached to it. Among the leaves was a cottage-like tree house that could fit a full family of six.

"Welcome to the Mystic Tree." Flapper introduced. "There's so many wonderful things for you to see, and I would love, love, love for you to meet my friends. If not for the problem we have now."

Nightmares were soaring around the tree, and many flying creatures were chasing after them. Then the Nightmares on the ground were being ambushed by creatures of water. Tooth soared out of the sleigh and joined the flying creatures in their chase, alongside Flapper. Vega was looking down at the ground before something caught her eye.

"Guys, look!" she pointed to where Pitch is fighting against a capes male wearing a wizard's hat and has a much larger dragon friend beside him. "We've got to help him!"

North circled the tree wildly, looking for a perfect spot, before landing the sleigh on the ground. North, Jack and Sandy instantly hopped out and charged towards the Boogeyman; Bunny needed help from Vega getting out, his face still a little green from the ride.

"Tunnels," he muttered over and over. "Definitely taking my tunnels next time."

"Bunny looks green." Sophie giggled. Vega shook her head before turning to the fight where Pitch is outnumbered four against one, excluding his minions. Roan was about to deal the finishing blow when Pitch disappeared.

"Don't think you have won this time! You will tell me where the Granter is, Maker! Or I'll show you no mercy!" his eerie voice boomed.

"As I told you, I don't know! It's has been over a century since I last saw her!" Roan said. "And let me remind you who destroyed her in the first place! So if you think you can come into my woods and create all this hoo-ha, you have another thing coming so get all of your Nightmares and get the heck out of my land!"

North coughed at his choice of words while Jack snickered at Pitch's expression, who was down-right furious but did what he said and disappeared, along with his Nightmares.

"Finally he's gone!" Roan sighed. "That guy never takes 'no' for an answer."

"That's Pitch, alright." Jack said.

Vega and Bunny walked towards them with Tooth and Flapper rejoining them on the ground. The little reptile flew towards his master, asking if he's alright, fretting like a parent to his child.

'Though now I have a closer look at him, he does look like one.' Vega thought as she observed the Maker. He looks to be about three years her junior, with short reddish hair and emerald-green eyes, wearing a long black cape that hides his regular dark-blue shirt, brown pants and shoes. His hat looks more of a witch's that is navy-blue with a cotton puff at the tip. In his hand held a flimsy looking wand.

"Anyways, it's great to see you." Strangely, his voice doesn't seem to belong to that of a child but of a grown teenager. Though he should have since he would be over a few centuries older than her like the rest of the Guardians. "And you must be the new Guardian, Jack Frost. I'm Roan." He held out a hand.

Jack didn't take it. "I would shake, but my hand is ice cold," he informed him.

Then the Maker's eyes fell upon the Bennett children. "And that must be Jamie Bennett with his sister, Sophie. And...?"

"Vega, Vega Mallory. I'm their older cousin."

Roan blinked, and Vega could have sworn he almost looked shocked to see her... with a hint of recognition in his green eyes.

"...it can't be..." his words were inaudible but was still loud enough for her to hear.

"Is something wrong?"

That snapped the young boy out of his stupor, "Um, it's nothing." he shook his head. "Anyways, let me welcome you to my home."

As Roan led them to the tree, Vega couldn't shake the feeling she know him but couldn't remember.

**XXXX**

As they arrived at the entrance, Roan threw the doors open. What would have been a grand throne room was now filled with piles after piles of ripped papers and broken computer screens. Flapper was flying everywhere, trying to organize the mess with the other imaginary friends.

"Sorry about the mess. Pitch suddenly attacked and his Nightmares stomped all over the area, creating havoc." Roan sighed, scratching his head. "This'll set me behind schedule and I still have a whole pile of new demands for imaginary friends."

"Mind I ask?" Vega spoke. "How do you create imaginary friends?"

"Like this..." he demonstrated by picking a piece of paper. After reading what was on it, he waved his wand over it and the paper starts to morph into a cute blue-furred bunny with a cute pink nose. Then another wave of his wand, the bunny was sent to whoever it was to go. "Children wants a friendly companion to fight loneliness so I helped them by making them an imaginary friend. All they have to do is think of the kind of friend they want and that thought is printed out in paper... and you know the rest."

"Now I know why you looked like you're in need of doing paperwork." Jack said.

"Well, it's not that easy. Every second, there's always a new demand of an imaginary friend so it gets a bit cramped. With what has happened now, it'll take me forever to get all of these done."

"By the way, why did Pitch attack you?" Jamie asked the golden question everyone was wondering about.

Roan sighed, "As you know, he wants the Granter."

"We know the situation but... why would he attack you? No offense."

"That's because Roan is close to the first Granter." North explained. "You see, being the one who grants wishes of children, there are bound to have children who wishes for a friend, no?"

"You mean the Granter sends those wishes to Roan here? So he could create a friend for them?" Vega guessed, which North nodded. "Wow, you must be really close to the Granter, huh?"

"Not only that, but little Roan here developed a little crush towards her, eh mate?" Bunny teased. The young Maker blushed a tint of pink.

"T-That's not true!"

"Wait, you just said 'her'." Jack pointed out. "So you're trying to say is the Granter is a girl?"

They nodded.

"Other than that big clue we just found out, what I want to know is why? Why is the Granter born in the first place?" Vega questioned.

The older Guardians, including Roan, turned to each other. "It's a long story." Tooth said.

"So better open up your ears and listen carefully." Bunny said. "Because we ain't going to repeat."

The children, including Jack, nodded.


End file.
